Footbag Transport and Launch Apparatus

ABSTRACT

A footbag transport and launch apparatus has a box with a lid for transporting a footbag. The apparatus has a clip for attaching the box to a player&#39;s clothing or belt. The box has a spring-loaded moveable launch plate that latches in the loaded position. A spring release trigger unlatches the launch plate and launches the footbag.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The invention relates to a footbag transport and launch apparatus which may be attached to a player's clothing to transport a footbag and to launch the footbag by releasing energy stored in a spring mechanism activated by a release mechanism.

2. Background Information

A footbag is a small bag filled with beans, beads or sand. A footbag is used as a ball in a number of games that typically involve controlling the footbag with a player's feet. A game may involve a single player or multiple players. Some footbags have simple cotton exteriors, while others are made of multiple panels of material such as suede. The term Hacky Sack, often used as a name for a footbag, is a registered trademark of Wham-O, Inc. located in Emeryville, state of Calif., USA.

Freestyle footbag is a footbag game where players perform sequences of moves. The objective in freestyle is to sequentially perform a series of tricks linked together. A freestyle game can be easily initiated at any opportune moment.

The footbag is generally robust and can last a long time with proper care. It can be easily transported in a pocket. A footbag may be damaged by items such as keys in the pocket. Therefore, it is desirable to provide a compact wearable mechanism to safely transport the footbag.

There are a number of devices in the known art which hold and dispense sports balls or other projectiles. Some of these are designed to be attached to the player's clothing. These devices do not launch the sports ball energetically, as required for a game of footbag. U.S. Pat. No. 4,082,209 discloses a golf ball holder. The golf ball retaining and release mechanism does not store energy with which to launch the golf ball. U.S. Pat. No. 5,988,433 discloses a sports ball storage, transporter and dispenser. This device does not launch the ball, and is not suitable for wearing. U.S. Pat. No. 5,288,002 discloses a ball holder for carrying golf balls. The holder serves the purpose of holding golf balls in place and does not launch the balls. U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,065,040 and 4,062,482 disclose belt-mounted devices for holding a ball which do not launch the ball energetically as required for footbag. U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,189,732 and 4,045,068 disclose golf ball carriers and dispensers which serve the function of holding the balls in place, but do not launch the balls for play. U.S. Pat. No. 6,383,098 discloses a device to be worn on a shoe to provide a flat elastic surface with which to kick a footbag. The device is not a transport device nor does it launch a footbag. U.S. Pat. No. 7,213,724 discloses a table tennis ball delivery device adapted to be secured to or adjacent to the side of a table tennis table for directing a ball to a player upon the activation of a switch by the player. The device includes a chamber for carrying a supply of table tennis balls, a ball transfer mechanism for selectively advancing an individual ball from the chamber to a location over a flexed or cocked delivery spring oriented such that upon activation of the switch by a player, the spring is released so as to strike a ball and launch the ball to the player. This device is not suitable for wearing by the player. U.S. Pat. No. 7,028,682 discloses a ground-based ball launcher for inflated-ball sports practice which is used to launch multiple balls sequentially to enable practice, but is not a wearable transport and launch mechanism.

The prior art does not teach a wearable apparatus for transporting and energetically launching a footbag as would be advantageous for quickly and easily initiating a footbag game.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention alleviates the problems associated with the prior art and provides a wearable apparatus that can protect a footbag during transport and on demand can launch the footbag with a velocity suitable for conveniently initiating a footbag game.

In accordance with a preferred embodiment of the invention, the footbag transport and launch apparatus comprises: an attachment mechanism such as a clip or strap for attaching the apparatus to clothing; a box pivotally connected to the clip for holding a footbag; a top lid connected to the box to restrain the footbag; a movable launch plate; an energy storing spring; a spring restraining latch; and a spring release trigger for releasing the latch. A player operates the apparatus by pressing spring release trigger buttons activating the spring release trigger thus releasing the spring restraining latch, transferring the energy stored in the spring through the launch plate to the footbag and thus launching the footbag.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The foregoing aspects and other features of the present invention are explained in the following description, taken in connection with the accompanying drawing, wherein:

FIG. 1 provides an external view of the footbag transport and launch apparatus of the present invention.

FIG. 2 illustrates details of the spring restraining latch and spring release trigger of the footbag transport and launch apparatus.

FIG. 3 is a side view of an embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 4 is a flow chart for typical operation of the apparatus.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

Although the present invention will be described with reference to the embodiments described herein, it should be understood that the present invention could be implemented in many alternate embodiments. In addition, any suitable size, shape or type of elements or materials could be used.

Referring first to FIG. 1, in accordance with one embodiment of the invention, the footbag transport and launch apparatus 8 includes a box 10 which contains a player's footbag 6. The box 10 is pivotally connected through a clip pivot 12 to a clip 14 for attaching the apparatus to clothing. A hinge 16 connects a top lid 18 to the box 10 to keep the footbag 6 safe during transportation. The hinge is designed to allow the player to easily flip open the apparatus to initiate a game. In operation, a player places a footbag in the footbag transport and launch apparatus 8 and attaches the apparatus to clothing such as a belt using an attachment mechanism such as a strap or clip 14. The player tilts the box 10 in a desired direction by rotating the box relative to the clip using clip pivot 12. The player opens the top lid 18 and presses the spring release trigger buttons 22 disposed on opposite side walls 11 of the box, thus deflecting the spring release triggers 20 so as to launch the footbag by activating a spring mechanism contained in the box. The perspective view of FIG. 1 shows only one of a pair of spring release trigger buttons 22 and spring release triggers. Another similar mechanism is hidden on the opposite side of the box.

The box 10 is preferably made of a stiff material such as plastic. Alternatively, any other suitable material could be used including metal, wood, stiff leather, or heavy fabric. The shape of the box 10 is preferably a rectangular parallelepiped. Alternatively, a horizontal section of the box can be a circle, a D-shaped half cylinder where the flat side of the half cylinder is against the player's clothes, or any other suitable shape for containing the footbag.

The purpose of the top lid 18 is to restrain the footbag 6 in the box 10 when not in use. The top lid 18 is preferably the same material as the box. Alternatively, the top lid 18 can be any other device that will restrain the footbag and that can be released. The top lid 18 may be a device such as a hinged lid to the box, a cloth cover, a wire mesh, a strap or a bar. The top lid 18 can be easily flipped out of the way when the player desires to begin a game.

The clip 14 for attaching the apparatus to clothing can take a variety of well known mechanisms that will fasten the apparatus to the player's clothing or belt. In a preferred embodiment the clip 14 is a plastic device designed to provide some pressure when stretched due to sliding it onto the player's belt. Alternatively, the clip 14 can be made of a spring metal. In another embodiment the clip can derive its spring force from a torsion spring that twists when the clip is pushed open.

The clip 14 may preferably be connected to the box 10 using a clip pivot 12. The clip pivot 12 connecting the clip to the box allows the player to orient the box in a desired direction chosen to optimally initiate the game. The clip pivot mechanism should maintain the relative angle between the box 10 and the clip 14 while initiating a game. The relative angle of the clip and box can be maintained by any known mechanism such as a ratchet mechanism, a friction surface, or an indent. The clip pivot 12 may optionally restrict the range of angles by known means, for example, to vertical plus or minus 45 degrees. In an alternative embodiment, the clip 14 can be attached directly to the box 10 without an intermediate pivot 12. In this embodiment the player would have to lean over or twist the box and clip relative to the player's body to control the launch direction.

The spring release trigger 20 and spring release trigger buttons are preferably built into the box 10. In the preferred embodiment, pressing the spring release trigger buttons 22 results in a torsional strain of the box at the spring release trigger pivot 24. This strain causes the spring release trigger to move outwards, releasing the spring mechanism contained in the box. In an alternate embodiment the spring release trigger pivot 24 is a flexible device such as a torsion spring connecting the spring release trigger mechanism to the box.

FIG. 2 illustrates the launch mechanism of the footbag transport and launch apparatus 8 with the sides of the box 10 and the top lid 18 removed from the figure for clarity. The box bottom 34 is a part of the box 10. The spring 30 at one end contacts the box bottom 34 and at the other end contacts launch plate 36 that acts as a launch to support the footbag. The apparatus is shown in armed position ready to launch the footbag. The player stores energy in the energy storing spring 30 by pushing down launch plate 36 relative to box bottom 34. Spring restraining latch 32 holds the launch plate 36 in position relative to the box bottom 34. The spring release trigger latch 32 is a tab that restrains the launch plate 36. Spring release trigger latches 32 free the launch plate 36 when the spring release triggers 20 are deflected by the player pushing spring release trigger buttons 22. The deflection of the spring release triggers 20 relative to the box are enabled by the spring release trigger pivots 24. The spring release trigger pivots 24 may be flexible elements built into the box or may be a separate flexible mechanism connecting the box to the trigger mechanism. In the preferred embodiment, the spring release triggers 20, spring release trigger buttons 22, spring release trigger latches 32 and spring release trigger pivots 24 are built into the box as one piece. The energy stored in the spring 30 pushes the launch plate 36 launching the footbag 6 when the player presses the spring release trigger buttons 22. It should be understood that the foregoing description of a spring release trigger mechanism is only illustrative of the invention. Various alternatives and modifications can be devised by those skilled in the art without departing from the invention.

FIG. 3 illustrates a preferred method of building the spring release trigger mechanism into the structure of the box. The preferred mechanism for activating the trigger is buttons 22 on the side of the box that when squeezed a stress is induced in the portion of the box 10 indicated at 24. This portion of the box is the spring release trigger pivot 24. The strain of the spring release trigger pivot 24 deflects the spring release trigger 20 causing the spring restraining latch to deflect releasing the launch plate 36. The footbag is thus launched or forced upward by releasing the potential energy stored in the spring 30. Alternative spring release mechanisms could require a pulling, pushing or twisting action to release the launch plate. While in the preferred embodiment the spring restraining latch 32 and the spring release trigger 20 are built into the structure of the box 12, in alternate embodiments one or more of the latch 22, the trigger 24 and the buttons 30 may be separate from the box.

The energy storing spring 30 is preferably a conical or an hourglass shaped compression spring. The hourglass and conical shape have the advantage that the spring does not buckle easily. The spring shape can alternatively be cylindrical or barrel shaped. Yet another alternative is a torsion spring.

Typically, a footbag 6 weighs approximately 50 grams and has a diameter of about 4 cm. The spring 30 stores enough energy to launch the footbag to a minimum altitude between 5 cm and 60 cm. The energy stored in the spring is preferably between 0.05 J and 1.0 J. The player places the footbag 6 in the box and pushes down the launch plate 36, compressing the spring 30 from the unlatched position to the latched position. The distance between these two positions is preferably between 0.5 inch and 2 inches. The required spring constant is thus between 0.002 joule/cm² and 0.6 joule/cm². Preferably the spring constant is about 0.05 joule/cm².

A typical operation of the footbag transport and launch apparatus is illustrated in FIG. 4. In step 40 the player clips the apparatus onto his clothing or belt. The player in step 42 opens the top lid 18. If the launch plate is found at step 44 in the released position, the player in step 46 pushes the launch plate down and latches it. The player in step 48 puts the footbag into the box. If the player decides at 50 that he does not want to play immediately, he closes the top lid 18 at step 52. After transporting the apparatus and the footbag to the site of a game at 54, the player opens the top lid at step 56 and rotates the box to a suitable angle 58 to launch the footbag. When the player decides to play, the player squeezes the spring release trigger buttons at step 62 and launches the footbag. At the end of a game the player repeats the process of latching the launch and inserting the footbag into the box at 46.

It should be understood that the foregoing description is only illustrative of the invention. Various alternatives and modifications can be devised by those skilled in the art without departing from the invention. Accordingly, the present invention is intended to embrace all such alternatives, modifications and variances which fall within the scope of the appended claims. 

1. A device for retaining and launching a footbag comprising: a box defining a chamber for retaining the footbag and having an opening therein; an attachment mechanism for attaching the box to an article of clothing; and a launch mechanism disposed internally of the chamber and acting on the footbag to launch the footbag from the box opening, the launch mechanism including: a device for storing potential energy, and a trigger mechanism for releasing a part of the potential energy as kinetic energy of the footbag to launch the footbag from the box.
 2. The device according to claim 1 wherein the box includes a top lid pivotally mounting to an edge of the opening to close the opening of the box.
 3. The device according to claim 1 wherein the attachment mechanism includes a clip pivotally mounted to the box.
 4. The device according to claim 1 wherein the device for storing potential energy includes a launch plate moveable within the box from a latched position to a released position, and an energy storing spring disposed between the launch plate and a closed end of the box, the launch plate transferring a portion of the potential energy from the energy storing spring to the footbag as kinetic energy of the footbag.
 5. The device according to claim 4 wherein the trigger mechanism includes: at least one release trigger disposed in combination with launch plate and an aperture disposed through a side wall of the box, each release trigger including an arm with a spring restraining latch at one end engaging the launch plate and a trigger button disposed at the opposite end of the arm.
 6. The device according to claim 5 including a pair of release triggers disposed on opposite sides of the launch plate and apertures disposed through opposite side walls of the box for accepting each trigger button. 